Washington, April 30 – The US government has unveiled a new policy that led to thousands of international students abruptly losing their legal status, sparking legal challenges and widespread confusion across campuses. The sudden cancellations, tied to a policy shift by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), affected students flagged through an FBI crime database—even if they had no criminal convictions.
In recent weeks, students were shocked to find their records removed from SEVIS, the database that tracks international student status. Fearing arrest or deportation, some fled the US, while others went into hiding. The government has since begun reinstating legal status amid court cases and public backlash.
The Department of Homeland Security revealed that roughly 6,400 students were flagged in a National Crime Information Center (NCIC) search, which includes names of suspects and individuals with dropped charges. Among them was Akshar Patel, a Texas student whose reckless driving charge in 2018 was dismissed. His name was included in a list of 734 flagged students, which was then used to order mass termination of student records in SEVIS—without individual review.
Critics, including immigration lawyer Brad Banias, say the new policy grants ICE excessive power by treating visa revocation as grounds to strip students of their status. “This just gave them carte blanche… even if they’ve done nothing wrong,” he said.
In court, DHS officials insisted that students had not officially lost their status, calling the SEVIS updates an “investigative red flag.” Still, affected students were marked as failing to maintain status, forcing some colleges to advise them to stop working or studying.
US District Judge Ana Reyes criticized the lack of due process, saying, “All of this could have been avoided if someone had taken a beat.” She urged both parties to settle to protect students like Patel from deportation.